Fans' verdicts on new Mercedes and Ferrari

While most of the other F1 cars launched so far have incorporated Ferrari's developments in the sidepod area, Mercedes has instead opted to evolve its 2017 design.

Ferrari is said to have worked on its reliability, with technical issues partly causing it to lose out in the 2017 constructors championship, while Mercedes is aiming to rein in the 'diva' characteristics of its predecessor with the new car.

Fans on the Autosport Forums have had their say on today's launches:

Ferrari:

Ferrari2012: Without the white it looks more beautiful. I like the livery, very nice. The sidepod has a cut in middle, it's an evolution of last year but [with a] great undercut at the back.

learningtobelost: Man, having the halo in bright red really does make it look like a toy.

Jamiednm: If it is as fast as it is ugly, Ferrari will walk the constructors' championship.

EndlessMotion: Looks like a refined design of last year, as expected. Like the work around the sidepods. I thought Ferrari might have slimmed down the packaging toward the rear of the car but it doesn't seem like any difference to last year as of yet. Mercedes is really tightening up and smoothing out the engine cover and cooling area significantly in comparison.

Looking forward to seeing the early feedback during testing of all the top teams and driver feedback. Sebastian [Vettel] and Lewis [Hamilton] are usually quite easy to read during the testing interviews.

Seanspeed: I'm really less than impressed. While the bottom definitely tapers away far more at the back than last year, you can see where the compromise comes from - having a bulkier front.

I'm sure Ferrari has found this a net benefit or they wouldn't have done it, but it's not necessarily impressive, either. Not when Red Bull and Mercedes have both noticeably made impressive gains here.

I think Ferrari is ultimately hampered by the engine still. It just can't get away with the tighter packaging because it has higher cooling demands and with reliability a big concern this year, there's even less room to take risks without being very confident.

Neno: Seems Ferrari has gone with the philosophy of 'if it's working we don't need to change it'.

Mercedes:

Mc_Silver: The car looks very neat and tidy. A clear evolution of the W08 which is the logical thing to do.

Nonesuch: Everything you put on the outside of the car where it catches air comes at a cost.

They seem quite anxious to steer the air in certain directions [at the bargeboards], which is interesting.

We'll see how it goes, but anyone betting against Mercedes hasn't paid attention these last five years.

Mercedes knows where its problems were last year. Many of them were already solved by early summer. It doesn't need to do something drastically different now.

FullOppositeLock: Ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner. Looks even better than last year's what with the single shorter wheelbase and the darker, more slick livery. Best engine, best driver, probably best or close to best aero, I'd almost put my house on them running away with it again.

Jordan44: I have a bad initial feeling about this car though, seems to be no real obvious aero changes despite this being only the second year of this set of aero regulations. I hope we'll see a lot more bits and pieces bolted on during testing.

RPM40: Quite evolved around the sidepods/bargeboard area.

These cars are all largely soft evolutions though so nothing big to see.

steferrari: No Ferrari-style sidepods then... for now, at least.